Successful Iowa Hunts
Scouting is Essential!

Mike, a successful bow hunter from Minnesota, harvested this mainframe 8 point (172 5/8 green score) whitetail buck on public land - November 6, 2007. Click here to see more successful whitetail deer hunters.

If you're serious about hunting, and you've got hunting Iowa on your mind, you need a plan. We all know the techniques and equipment used have changed over the years, but one thing remains the same - the nature of a mature whitetail buck or big gobbler. There is no magic formula or secret-to-success manual. Tagging a big buck or old gobbler takes time and effort. It means gaining knowledge about the area you are going to hunt and applying that knowledge during the season.

Scouting is one of the most important actions you can take. Scouting allows you to accumulate knowledge about the woods. And it can't happen only a few days before the season opens. This means if you are a long way from the hunting land, you may need to make a few trips during the year. If you're coming to hunt in Iowa from a long distance away, but you don't have time to be scouting year-round and making multiple 500+ mile trips, don't worry, living inside Iowa we are constantly learning about our land and wildlife. Daily observation and year round scouting (on foot, with pickup, 4-wheeler, spotting scopes, and trail cameras) helps us to predict behavior and activity during the hunting season. Then, by closely monitoring a number of key locations, maybe we can outsmart a trophy buck or big tom.

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